44 AUSTRALIAN AVIATION DECEMBER 2017
ClassicvSuper
In comparing the RAAF’s
two frontline combat aircraft it
should be noted up front that
the F/A-18F Super Hornet drew
upon two decades of lessons
learnt on the generation older
F/A-18A ‘classic’ Hornet, and
that due to its better sensor and
communications integration
and low observable shaping
and materials, it is more suited
for high intensity operations in
contested environments.
Operation Okra is not the
RAAF’S first operational
deployment to the MER with the
classic Hornet. In February 2003,
14 F/A-18As and personnel from
75SQN were augmented with
personnel and aircraft drawn
from other 81WG units, and
successfully completed a four-
month detachment at Al Udeid
AB in Qatar during Operations
Bastille and Falconer. These
aircraft were initially tasked
with the protection of unarmed
‘high-value asset’ aircraft such
as coalition air-to-air tankers,
AEW&C and Joint-STARs, but
later switched to the close air
support (CAS) and interdiction
roles as air supremacy was
gained.
But those Hornets had only
been upgraded to the early
AIR 5376 Hornet Upgrade
(HUG) program Phase 2.1
standard, with a new combinedinterrogator transponder (CIT),
the APG-73 radar, and interim
software upgrades. The later
HUG Phase 2.2 which started
in 2004 included new cockpit
colour displays, a Link 16
MIDS datalink, and the joint
helmet-mounted cueing system
(JHMCS).
HUG 2.3 saw the addition of
the ALR-67(V)3 radar warning
receiver (RWR) and the IAI
EL/L-8222 jammer pod to give
the classic a high degree of self-
protection.
Running in parallel with HUG
2.2/3 was Project AIR 5409
which saw the addition of GPS-
guided weapons, the AIM-132
ASRAAM and the then latest
AIM-120C5/7 AMRAAM air-
to-air missiles added to the
Hornet’s load out, while Project
AIR 5418 saw the integration of
the 400km standoff JASSM land
attack missile.
HUG Phase 2.4 saw the
obsolete AN/AAS-38 NITE Hawk
targeting pod replaced by the
more advanced Litening AT pod
as used by the US Marine Corps’
classic Hornets, while HUG
Phases 3.1 and 3.2 saw structural
enhancements made to the
classic Hornet’s tiring airframe.
Compared to the classic, the
Super Hornet’s airframe is about
30 per cent larger, and its fuel
capacity is similarly greater. TheSuper has 11 external weapons
stations to the classic’s nine,
and the F/A-18F is a two-seater
versus the F/A-18A’s single-seat.
Conversely, the Super Hornet is
less aerodynamic, heavier and
slower than the classic.
Where the Super Hornet really
excels is in its modern integrated
sensor and communications
suites. While its ASQ-228
ATFLIR targeting pod is not
considered quite as good as
the classic’s Litening AT, the
Super carries the AN/APG-79
AESA radar which gives it an
order of magnitude greater
range, targeting flexibility and
system reliability than that of
the classic, and a more advanced
integrated electronic warfare
suite. The two-crew Super also
allows greater flexibility during
combat, with the back-seater
able to fly ‘offence’ by focusing
solely on the sensors during CAS
and interdiction mission.
“The differences between the
(upgraded) classic and the Super
are subtle as opposed to stark,”
said AIRCDRE Terry van Haren.
“Both aircraft are well designed
for and very capable in the role of
interdiction and CAS. In terms of
range and endurance, the Supers
have more internal fuel so they
have a little bit more endurance,
so the number of revisits to the
tanker are fewer. But the wholemission is predicated on how
much fuel is available from our
tankers, so the difference is how
many refuels the Super needs
compared to the classic.
“The Super can carry more
weapons because of the two
extra pylons, so they’ll typically
carry five weapons each
compared to the classic’s three
or four. But on the classic we
have the BRU-54 (dual bomb
rack) which allows it to carry two
500lb weapons on one station.”
For the current operations
in Iraq and Syria, both Hornet
variants typically employ the
GBU-38 GPS-guided or GBU-54
dual laser/GPS-guided weapons,
both based on the Mark 82 500lb
bomb. In the 2003 deployment,
the classic Hornets employed
GBU-10 2,000lb or GBU-12
500lb laser-guided weapons
which required a laser spot to
be trained on the target right
through to impact, something
which proved difficult in
overcast or dusty conditions.
“Both Hornet types have very
high mission completion rates,
their reliability at all times
has been very high, and the
professionalism of all aircrew
has been very highly rated,” said
AIRCDRE van Haren.
“They’re doing a great job
and doing everything very
professionally.”